Camden Yards is of course the godfather of the modern ballpark. It's retro style and top of the line concessions set the standard for nearly every single park built since. Whether publicly or privately financed, franchises across not just baseball, but all sports, have pitched the idea that you're nothing without a shiny new venue.

Implicit in this idea is that no matter what team is playing in it, people will come to the game to see the new digs. In that respect, I don't think Camden that set that standard, but in fact it was Cleveland's Jacobs Field. Casual baseball fans and fans not tied to the Indians in any way still knew about the Indians' home sellout streak. It became a part of the team's identity throughout the 90s and early part of this decade as much as any player did.

The New Park Bubble was stretched to it's breaking point last year when the Nationals were just too lousy to justify any huge new stadium attendance. And now after last season's disappointing finish, and the frightening lack of disposable income hitting baseball fans, attendance is even lacking at The Jake.

They've divided up a call list of season-ticket holders who haven't yet renewed for 2009. If you're one, the voice on the other line may be team President Paul Dolan, General Manager Mark Shapiro, executive vice president for business Dennis Lehman or maybe even radio play-by-play announcer Tom Hamilton.

On a few frigid weeknights in January, the Indians front office is also reaching out to fans where they live.

On Monday, Dolan, Shapiro and Lehman fielded questions from about 80 fans at Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School auditorium in the first of three "Indians Town Hall" meetings with current and former season-ticket holders.

Questions on Monday ranged from why, at $4 for bottled water, fans can't at least bring one in if it's still factory-sealed (Lehman promised he'd look into it) to whether the team had a contingency plan to add power to the lineup if injured designated hitter Travis Hafner doesn't return to form.

Sure, desperate times call for desperate measures and at the end of the day this is still about trying to get that money back, but it's a genuine exchange. Many sports fans are fiercely loyal anyway, but who wouldn't feel better if the organization just took an hour to listen before taking your money? In an era where press releases speak just as loudly as actions in the eyes of a complicit media, tangible contact and real answers to real questions go a long way.

We cover this stuff every day. As cynical as I am about the entire business of sports, this is refreshing. You've heard a lot of talk about "corrections" during this recession. It's a nice way of saying that the greed and mismanagement of the last 15 years were unsustainable. If that trickles down to a rethinking of monolithic, mechanical sports organizations than that's a correction that will be better for all fans.